Mission trip tips

I’ve had the blessing to go on three short-term mission trips to Kenya and am in the process of preparing for our Honduras trip.  I wanted to share a few things I’ve learned along the way and see what kinds of tips other more experienced folks might have.

Learn some of the language – You don’t have to be fluent, but just learning a dozen words / phrases makes a big difference.  It shows that you are trying to relate to them as individuals and have a respect for their culture.  It even made a difference going through immigration.  As soon as I used a couple Swahili phrases for “Hello” and “How are you?” (Jambo!  Habari?) the man’s face lit up and he started a conversation.

When preparing to go to Kenya I made some mp3 files with some basic Swahili words and used them on my iPod to memorize them.  I would say the word, then the definiton and repeat it a couple times.  Then I made “tests” which went in the reverse order.  I reluctantly shared them with team members (these were not professional quality at all!).  Many people used them extensively and we jokingly referred to the CD’s as Learn Swahili with Neil-ie. 

My daughter was kind enough to make a Spanish mp3 file for me that I am currently using while I commute to learn some basic phrases.  The most important phrase is, “This is my daughter.  She translates for me.”

Bring at least a couple sets of easy-dry clothes (t-shirt, pants, underwear).  They aren’t cheap, but if you just use them for trips they’ll last a long time.  Bring one set in your carry on baggage along with some basic toiletries.  That way, if your luggage is lost you can just wash them every day or so.

Be humble about thinking we know the best way to do things – There are many occassions when the local builders we worked with would be doing something that looked odd to us.  But 9 out of 10 times it made sense later on, so I am glad I repressed my “We’re from America and we know how to do everything better” impulses.  Asking them to show us how to do things their way helped bridge the relationships quickly.

The local people are watching you closely, so be on your proper behavior at all times!  Some nights we’d be driving back to the “hotel” totally exhausted.  When we’d pass people on the road they’d look at us warily.  But if you smiled and waved they would light up and wave cheerfully.  We tend to stick out, for obvious reasons, so we are always on display as representatives of Christ and of the U.S. 

When in doubt, visit with the people - We are such “task completers” that it is tempting to focus on the projects.  But they will get done one way or another, so always take time to visit with the people you are helping, onlookers, workers and especially the children. 

Put bright tags or strips of ribbon on the bags of everyone on the team - This helps a lot when finding and moving luggage.

Don’t give food, money or anything else without clearing it with the local church - They know who is truly needy.  Giving without using discretion can cause very serious problems for your team and future teams.

What are your tips?  What are your questions / concerns about going on mission trips?